Pat’s Point of View

Google has released the results of a study into current web authoring practices showing which aspects of HTML are being (ab)used the most. They took a sample of about 1 billion pages, and the results make it clear web-standards are not being used as much as some (read I) would like.

Sure there will be a lot of old pages that were coded years and years ago, but nevertheless there’s a lot of people still using invalid, presentational mark-up. :(

On a more positive note I think this is great news, that someone like Google are making use of the mass of data they collect during the course of indexing websites, to give us some hard statistical evidence of the state of play. I know Google are not well regarded for their own use of standards (they even make mention of the fact in their report) but I believe there is some defence of their position, but when it counts they obviously are championing the standards cause with some conviction.

P

See what people are blogging about: web, google, web-standards

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I did enjoy reading a recent rant by Joe Clark regarding those who continue to ignore web-standards. Having spent many years working for digital agencies (ie: advertising agencies trying to make a quick buck from “this Internet thing”) I can testify that many high-profile, “big” websites are built with shockingly bad code. And it’s a shame.
Continue reading ‘Hear, hear’

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Talk about getting in on the ground floor and cashing out at the top! Disney buys Pixar and founder Steve Jobs (also Apple CEO) will make $3.5bn. Pixar was born after Jobs bought the digital animation division of LucasFilm for $10m in ‘86 (quite a bargin in itself, surely!). He’ll now be the biggest shareholder of Disney.

He knows how to spot a winner.

P

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OK I have a problem, I just can’t stop playing with Google Earth.

You should see all the stuff people have found using it! For example, see The Register. Or Google Earth Hacks. Or this.

Most of it’s interesting but sometimes you wonder if we should be able to see this stuff. I mean you would think that they wouldn’t release photos of anything secretive….or would they?

For the record, here I am.

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There are some cool technologies that will soon change our daily lives. You hear a lot about “Web 2.0″ these days, talking about the new features of the web; blogging, folksonomies, tagging, sharing etc, but it will be even more exciting when these things break away online and merge into our daily lives. I shall call it Everyday 2.0!
Continue reading ‘Everyday 2.0′

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Nothing funny seems funny no more, since I discovered Chuck Norris Facts…

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I have started the new year with a new job, at Step Two Designs, as a usability consultant.

It’s looking very good so far and I’m looking forward to the future.

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Welcome to 2006.

We had a great NYE last night. Jenn and I started off with a picnic with some friends at Rodd Point (near Five Dock) and watched the 9:00 fireworks. It was a great spot right on the water, nice and shady too since it was a hot day (but not as hot as today!). We couldn’t see the bridge but you could see the fireworks over the trees and buildings so it was really good. It didn’t get too crowded either.
Continue reading ‘Happy New Year!’

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